Region revitalises economy and promotes social inclusion with a focus on the fashion industry.
- 20 July 2015
The initiation handles the Romany culture and the Gömör regional identity as a central element, and not merely on a solidary basis, but as an actual assistance. I consider Kutika a promising experiment because of this, and it may be exemplary for other regions’ initiations as well.
Faced by increasing social intolerance caused by a higher than average unemployment rate, and a growing population of socially disadvantaged residents (including Roma), city leaders in the Slovakian town of Tarnala decided to take action. Their focus was on creating jobs that not only employed the socially disadvantaged population, but also promoted their culture. To accomplish this, they turned to fashion.
The fashion bridge
The first step was to provide the targeted population with the necessary skill set. To accomplish this, the project focused on using Roma cultural heritage as a framework for teaching the population relevant skills such as sewing, tailoring and clothing design. Romani Design, an organisation dedicated to decreasing social intolerance towards the Roma people, helped coordinate the programme. The goal was to use fashion, something that all populations can relate to, as a bridge between Roma culture and society at large.
The project selected 30 individuals – 15 Slovakians and 15 Hungarians – to participate in a general training programme. This initial training focused not only on specific fashion-related skills, but also general skill sets such as social competences and vocational training. Following a final exam, the group was narrowed down to 14 finalists who were invited to continue further into the fashion world.
Showtime
The training culminated in a very successful, city-wide fashion show that garnered significant media attention. Among the many designs that graced the catwalk were the Roma-inspired designs created with the contribution of the project’s participants. The collection is available for sale in the showroom and web store of Romani Design Fashion Studio.
Building on the experiences of the training course, the project partners are seeking opportunities to continue and extend the training course to new participants. “At the end I couldn’t even sleep because of the excitement,” Iveta, one of the needle women, remembers.
Total investment and EU funding
Total investment for the project “HUSK Design – Re-industrialisation with innovative technologies: the revival of Tornala’s dress factory by Hungarian custom design” is EUR 312 120, of which the EU’s European Regional Development Fund is contributing EUR 252 037 from the Operational Programme “Hungary-Slovakia Cross-border Cooperation Programme” for the 2007 to 2013 programming period.